NEW DELHI: The first session of Parliament after the Lok Sabha polls will be held from June 24 to July 3 in what could provide the first peep into the tense dynamics that is likely to define government’s equations with the opposition which has returned with stronger numbers and has signalled its intent by questioning the legitimacy of the new Modi government.
The session, in which newly-elected members of Lok Sabha will be sworn in, will see President Droupadi Murmu addressing a joint sitting of the two Houses on June 27. While government, as is always the case, will utilise the President’s address to showcase its agenda for the next five years, the number-boosted opposition has several issues to raise, including the recent NEET controversy. Its response to the President’s address will provide the first indication of its approach in Parliament.
The election of the Speaker will be the high point of the short session and opposition’s response to the government’s choice will be worth watching. So far, all Speakers have been elected unanimously.
Both Houses of Parliament are expected to reconvene in the third week of July for presentation of the Union Budget.
The session will also see Nirmala Sitharaman becoming the first finance minister to present seven consecutive Budgets, surpassing the record of Morarji Desai, who had presented six Budgets in a row.
“The first session of 18th LS is being summoned from June 24 to July 3 for oath/affirmation of newly elected members, election of speaker, President’s address and discussion thereon,” parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju said on X.
He said the 264th session of Rajya Sabha will commence on June 27 and conclude on July 3. PM Narendra Modi is expected to introduce his council of ministers to Parliament after the President’s address on June 27.
The Prime Minister will respond to the debate on the motion of thanks to the President’s address in both Houses of Parliament.
The session is also important as after a decade, Lok Sabha will have a leader of opposition and Congress is keen that Rahul Gandhi take up the post.
In the 16th and 17th Lok Sabha, Congress had the highest number of members in the opposition camp but fell short of 10% of the total strength, a prerequisite for a party to lay claim to the LoP’s post. Congress had won 52 seats in 2019, three seats short of the required number, and was way below in 2014 when it had won just 44 seats. The party, however, has won 99 seats this time.